Vince Carter scored 24 points for the Raptors, who won for just
the second in seven games and fell just short of franchise marks
for points in a quarter and half.

Toronto set the team records against the Nets on January 11,
1997 with 48 points in the first quarter and 79 in the first
half.

"A blowout is always good for us because it gives us
confidence," Vince Carter said. "It feels good because of the
drought we've been in and the shooting slump we've been in. A
game like this lets you run your plays more fluently."

Alvin Williams had a career-high 12 assists for the Raptors,
including a franchise-record eight in the first quarter, when
Toronto shot 64 percent (18-of-28) from the field. The Raptors
made 12-of-22 shots in the second period and finished the half
at 65 percent.

"When you make your shots, make your passes and play good team
defense, everyone looks a lot better," Williams said. "We really
wanted to step up the intensity tonight."

Doug Christie returned after a four-game absence due to an ankle
injury to add 20 points for Toronto, which cooled off with only
23 points in the third quarter and took a 98-67 lead into the
final 12 minutes.

"I held Doug back until he was ready," Butch Carter said. "He
got Kerry (Kittles) stopped and he gave us somebody else to post
up, other than Vincent and Antonio (Davis)."

"Doug is an addition at both ends of the court," Vince Carter
added. "It's good to have everybody back healthy. We know we are
very capable and hopefully this is the start of something good
for us."

Toronto threatened its record for most lopsided win, opening a
116-79 lead on a basket by John Thomas with 2:38 remaining. The
Raptors' biggest win in franchise history was a 120-84 victory
over Portland on January 28, 1997.

The loss snapped a modest two-game winning streak for New
Jersey, which has gone 6-3 since its 2-15 start. The Nets also
suffered a 112-92 home loss to the Raptors on November 5.

"We have to face the fact that the first half was terrible," New
Jersey coach Don Casey said. "We got into such a deep hole that
the whole second half we spent trying to get out. I don't know
what happened to us. Toronto had a lot going. They were in such
a comfort zone."

New Jersey center Jim McIlvaine suffered a mild concussion in
the first quarter and did not return. After being taken to
Toronto Western Hospital for observation, he was able to rejoin
the Nets on their plane trip home.

Toronto's Dee Brown missed the game with a left knee injury.

The Nets took their only lead at 7-6 on Kittles' 3-pointer with
9:37 to play in the first quarter, but Toronto ripped off an
11-2 spurt and grabbed a 17-9 edge on Christie's driving layup
with 6:58 left in the quarter.

A 20-6 burst gave Toronto a 41-21 cushion on two foul shots by
Kevin Willis with 37 seconds left in the first period and the
Raptors cruised from there.

"There's no excuse for it," said New Jersey guard Stephon
Marbury, who added 18 points. "We've won eight games, not 15 in
a row. We beat teams who were coming off four games in five
nights or teams who were struggling. We haven't beaten a
contender, someone who's on the way to the playoffs."